Imagine that you are preparing a project with your friend. You have found some interesting material for the presentation and you want to read this text to your friend. You have 1.5 minutes to read the text silently, then be ready to read it out aloud. You will not have more than 1.5 minutes to read it.

People who have plenty of positive thoughts and emotions in their everyday lives tend to be happier, healthier, and get along better with others. We all know that positive thoughts and emotions help you feel better, but they also do some other pretty cool things. They help you improve your memory and attention, take in more information and hold several ideas in your mind at once, understand how different thoughts relate to each other, handle tough situations more easily.

Building habits that encourage you to think and feel more positive can help you be more satisfied and have fewer unwanted feelings. This is especially important if you’re already dealing with a lot of negative emotions like fear, sadness, anger, frustration, or stress. Everyone has negative thoughts and feelings sometimes, but try to look on the bright side as much as you can.

Imagine that you are preparing a project with your friend. You have found some interesting material for the presentation and you want to read this text to your friend. You have 1.5 minutes to read the text silently, then be ready to read it out aloud. You will not have more than 1.5 minutes to read it.

Communication shapes how we exchange information. The internet has revolutionized it, allowing people to send emails, make video calls, and share data instantly. Today, over 4.9 billion people use the internet, making digital communication essential.

Language plays a key role — different accents can affect pronunciation, leading to misunderstandings. Interpreters and translators help bridge language gaps, while media, including TV and the radio, keeps people informed. Technology has improved communication, but it also brings challenges. Mobile phones let us talk anytime, yet weak signals or interruptions can be frustrating. Online messages lack emotional depth—a single click can send a text, but tone and intention may be unclear.

Social media has transformed both formal and informal interactions. A viral image can reach millions, and over 80% of businesses use social platforms to improve job prospects. However, online privacy remains a concern. Effective communication — whether through speech, writing, or broadcasts—is key to success. Keeping messages clear and concise helps avoid misunderstandings and build strong connections.

Imagine that you are preparing a project with your friend. You have found some interesting material for the presentation and you want to read this text to your friend. You have 1.5 minutes to read the text silently, then be ready to read it out aloud. You will not have more than 1.5 minutes to read it.

Built on an ancient site, the Kazan Kremlin dates from the Muslim period of the Golden Horde and the Kazan Khanate. It was conquered by Ivan the Terrible in 1552 and became the Christian See of the Volga Land. The only surviving Tatar fortress in Russia and an important place of pilgrimage, the Kazan Kremlin consists of an outstanding group of historic buildings dating from the 16th to the 19th centuries, integrating remains of earlier structures of the 10th to the 16th centuries. The Kazan Kremlin is a historic citadel in Kazan, Russia, and a UNESCO World Heritage Site. It blends Russian and Tatar cultures, featuring landmarks like the Qol Sharif Mosque and Annunciation Cathedral. Built under Ivan the Terrible, it symbolizes centuries of cultural fusion, religious coexistence, and Tatar-Russian history.

Imagine that you are preparing a project with your friend. You have found some interesting material for the presentation and you want to read this text to your friend. You have 1.5 minutes to read the text silently, then be ready to read it out aloud. You will not have more than 1.5 minutes to read it.

Scientists say they have discovered what could be the smallest reptile in the world. It is a kind of chameleon and is the size of a sunflower seed. Chameleons are usually around 35–40 cm long. Scientists found two of the tiny lizards — a male and a female — in the mountains in northern Madagascar. They are just 22 mm long from nose to tail. The length of the male’s body is 13.5 mm. At first, the scientists thought the tiny reptiles were juveniles, but later realised they were fully-grown adults. The scientists called the miniature creatures nano-chameleons. The scientists tried to find more of the nano-chameleons, but “despite great effort” could not find any others. Madagascar is home to two- thirds of the world’s chameleon species. Scientists believe they may have originated there. However, the chameleon’s survival is threatened by deforestation on the island. One of the scientists said the nano- chameleons are lucky to survive.

Imagine that you are preparing a project with your friend. You have found some interesting material for the presentation and you want to read this text to your friend. You have 1.5 minutes to read the text silently, then be ready to read it out aloud. You will not have more than 1.5 minutes to read it.

The Citadel, ancient city and fortress buildings of Derbent, were part of the northern lines of the Persian Empire, which extended east and west of the Caspian Sea. The town of Derbent was built between these two walls, and has retained part of its medieval fabric. The site continued to be of great strategic importance until the 19th century. Derbent is located in Russia’s Dagestan region, on the western coast of the Caspian Sea. It owes its rich history to its strategic position, along the travel route between Europe and the Middle East, on the border of Europe and Asia, where the mountains of the Caucasus almost reach the coast leaving a narrow 3 km strip of plain. Archaeological excavations since the late 1970s have confirmed Derbent’s nearly 2,000 years of continuous history as an urban settlement, the oldest in Russia and one of the most ancient in the region.

Imagine that you are preparing a project with your friend. You have found some interesting material for the presentation and you want to read this text to your friend. You have 1.5 minutes to read the text silently, then be ready to read it out aloud. You will not have more than 1.5 minutes to read it.

Studies show that even a short vacation can significantly reduce stress levels and improve mental health. Last weekend, my friends and I set off at 6 AM for a two-day mountain retreat, aiming to test this theory. After a 250-kilometer drive, we checked in at a small eco-hotel designed to blend with nature. Research suggests that spending time in green spaces lowers cortisol levels, and indeed, after settling in, we already felt more relaxed.

We spent the afternoon looking around a historic village dating back to the 15th century. According to local guides, over 70% of tourists come here to escape urban life. The next morning, a professional guide picked us up at sunrise and set up a hiking route reaching 1,800 meters in altitude. After the hike, we headed for a lakeside café to refuel.

By the time we checked out, we realized how effective even a 48-hour getaway can be. Scientific data supports this—just two days in nature can boost creativity by 50% and improve mood for up to a week. Perhaps we should get away more often!

Imagine that you are preparing a project with your friend. You have found some interesting material for the presentation and you want to read this text to your friend. You have 1.5 minutes to read the text silently, then be ready to read it out aloud. You will not have more than 1.5 minutes to read it.

You may have heard of white noise being used to cover or hide background sounds. But now white noise has some colorful competition. There is a growing interest around diff erent kinds of noises. Pink noise, brown noise, and green noise make up a rainbow of calming sounds. And there is a growing interest in their theoretical effects on sleep, concentration, and relaxation. The science is new. There have only been a few small studies that look at the effects of the noises. Before we look at pink noise, let’s talk about the most common of colored noises — white. White noise is similar to static on a radio or television. Sound engineers describe it as having equal volume across all the frequencies that humans can hear. It gets its name from white light, which contains all the visible color wavelengths. However, the high frequencies of white noise can sound severe. Pink noise reduces the sound on those higher frequencies. It sounds lower in pitch, more like the natural sound of rain or the ocean.

Imagine that you are preparing a project with your friend. You have found some interesting material for the presentation and you want to read this text to your friend. You have 1.5 minutes to read the text silently, then be ready to read it out aloud. You will not have more than 1.5 minutes to read it.

The ear is made up of three parts that work together to process sounds: the outer ear, the middle ear, and the inner ear. Part of the inner ear contains tiny hair cells. These hair cells help send sound messages to the brain. Loud noise can damage them. Unlike damage to other parts of your body, inner ear damage never heals. Over time, as more and more hair cells get affected, your hearing will get worse and worse. If you use earphones and want to avoid hearing loss, doctors recommend the 60 %/60-minute rule: firstly, listen to music or play a movie or video game at no more than 60 % of the maximum volume, secondly, limit the amount of time you spend with earbuds in your ears to 60 minutes. Here’s another way to fi nd out if your earbuds are at a safe volume: ask people sitting near you if they can hear your music. If they can, it’s a sign that your hearing is being damaged. Turn the volume down until other people can’t hear it.

Imagine that you are preparing a project with your friend. You have found some interesting material for the presentation and you want to read this text to your friend. You have 1.5 minutes to read the text silently, then be ready to read it out aloud. You will not have more than 1.5 minutes to read it.

Lions are second only to human beings in terms of their historical geographical range. The only continents where lions have never resided are Australia, Antarctica, and Oceania. As for countries with lions, these have spanned continents from northern Eurasia to Africa. Up until 10,000 years ago, lions were found in countries in the Americas and northern Eurasia. They were also found in Europe until approximately 2,000 years ago, possibly even as late as 150 years ago. It was also about 150 years ago that most North African countries with lions saw them go extinct. Within the past 60 years, lions have become more at risk in general, and almost totally extinct north of the southern Sahara Desert. Today, lions occupy approximately 600,000 square miles, which is only 8 % of the territory they once lived on, and, unfortunately, this figure is steadily declining.

Task 1. Imagine that you are preparing a project with your friend. You have found some interesting material for the presentation and you want to read this text to your friend. You have 1.5 minutes to read the text silently, then be ready to read it out aloud. You will not have more than 1.5 minutes to read it.

The Curonian Spit is a unique and vulnerable, sandy and wooded cultural landscape on a coastal spit which features small Curonian lagoon settlements. The Spit was formed by the sea, wind and human activity and continues to be shaped by them. Rich with an abundance of unique natural and cultural features, it has retained its social and cultural importance. Local communities adapted to the changes in the natural environment in order to survive. This interaction between humans and nature shaped the Curonian Spit cultural landscape. The most valuable elements and qualities of the Curonian Spit cultural landscape are its unique size and general spatial structure, demonstrating the harmonious coexistence between humans and nature. Cultural elements including the remains of postal tracks, trade villages from the 10th and 11th centuries, traditional fi shermen villages and other archaeological heritage covered by sand. The Curonian Spit is an outstanding example of a landscape of sand dunes that is under constant threat from natural forces.